Fated Hearts (Southern Bride 8)

She also stood. “I understand that, but—”

I shook my head as fast as I could. Maybe I hoped if I did it fast and hard enough, the last half hour would simply slip free, and I could forget all about Roger and Kerri’s past. I wasn’t sure if knowing about her helped ease my pain or caused more of it. The mysterious woman who had been next to Roger entered my mind again. Had I conjured her up somehow? A chill ran through me, and I looked at the trees swaying in the wind.

He loves you…go to him.

After closing my eyes for a brief moment, I focused back on Saryn and cleared my throat. “I better get back in before Patty sends out a search party. Thank you so much for telling me about Kerri. It definitely clears up a few of the missing pieces.”

She gave me a soft smile. “I really wish you would talk to him.”

“I appreciate the advice, but if Roger truly wanted to work things out, he’d have come after me. He knows where I’ve been the last few weeks. I can’t fight for both of us, not when there could possibly be someone else standing between us forever.”

Turning away from Saryn, I quickly headed back inside the ballroom. With my head down, I somehow managed to find the ladies’ bathroom. One look at myself in the mirror, and I groaned.

Elizabeth walked into the bathroom and stood next to me. She opened her clutch and said, “Look at me.”

I did, and she grimaced. “Damn men,” she whispered. She pulled out a few things, plastered on a smile, and said, “It’s nothing that a little bit of lipstick and mascara can’t fix.”

I exhaled and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked tired, and no amount of makeup could fix my broken heart.

Letting out a ragged breath, I whispered, “I wish it were that easy.”

Roger

I LIFTED THE whiskey to my mouth and downed it all in one drink, then placed the empty glass back on the bar.

“Another one?” the bartender asked.

“I think he’s had enough,” Truitt’s voice said from behind me.

Looking at him over my shoulder, I smiled. “Last time I checked, I don’t need someone watching over me.”

Truitt glared. “Yeah, well, I’m certainly not going to let you get drunk at a charity dinner our mother worked hard at putting together. Get your shit together and go talk to her.”

I looked back at the bartender. “I’ll take another.”

“Damn it, Roger.”

Turning in my seat, I shot my brother a look that I hoped conveyed how close he was to getting punched in the face. “I don’t need or want your advice.”

Truitt sighed, grabbed me by the arm, and pulled me through a door. I tried to pull him to a stop, but he just looked at me said, “Don’t make a scene.”

He then proceeded to drag me down a hallway and into a small room. He shut the door, folded his arms across his chest, and glared at me.

I balled my hands into fists. “Move, or I’ll knock the shit out of you.”

“Do it. Then I can knock some fucking sense into you.”

I started to say something but turned away before I really did hit him.

“She’s here, you know.”

With a gruff laugh, I replied, “I know she’s here. She was the first fucking person I saw when I walked in. She’s also with a date.”

“He’s…”

Truitt’s voice trailed off, and I looked back over my shoulder at him. “He’s what?”

He shook his head. “Are you going to sit back and let some other guy sweep in and take her?”

My entire body trembled with anger. “Who. Is. He?”

“If you’re so fucking worried about it, go find out.”

I turned my back on him again. “I don’t care who he is.”

“Then why do you look like you want to murder the guy every time you catch a glimpse of him?”

I huffed.

Truitt sighed, and I could feel his eyes burning into my back. “Roger, Kerri is gone.”

I closed my eyes, and my body sagged. “It’s not just about Kerri. The last time Annalise and I were together, I…I fucked up.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

I walked over and dropped into a chair, dragging my hands down my face. “I can’t take the guilt, for one thing.”

Truitt pulled up another chair and sat down in front of me. “About Kerri?”

Leaning back, I let out a long breath. “That’s part of it. I avoided bringing Annalise to my house because the thought of making love to her in my own bed made me feel…not good about myself. I couldn’t bring myself to be with her in my room.”

Truitt frowned. “Why not?”

I shrugged. “All the women I’ve slept with in that bed. It didn’t feel right. I don’t know how to explain it. I didn’t want to tarnish what I had with Annalise. Anyway, we were at my house, and things got…heated. I took her to one of the spare bedrooms. I wasn’t myself, and I lost control.” I held up my hand. “Before you ask, I didn’t hurt her. But I wanted her in a way I haven’t ever wanted anyone before. It was this desperate need. Then she looked at me—and I saw it. I saw the way she felt about me in her eyes, and I suddenly felt it too. It scared me, the realization that she was falling for me, and I was for her. Something happened, and I tried to push it away by acting like a fucking asshole.”